Infernal Entity: Evolving With My Demonic System-Chapter 82: Competition

The planet known as Exo was a blue wasteland. That much was already known, and the students expected it the moment they stepped through the portal.

Still, expectation didn’t soften reality. On the other side, the students walked into unfamiliar terrain. The air felt strange on their skin. It was a bit colder compared to Earth, and it carried a faint pressure that made breathing feel different.

If the students had 21st-century devices with cameras, many of them would have taken pictures just to prove they had been here.

The portal behind them stood in an open field. Around it was a fortified settlement. Oval Corp structures surrounded the area, clean and solid, with the Oval Academy insignia etched into walls and towers.

The students were escorted into the Oval Corp base. Inside, they were shown several areas. There was a long hall lined with framed pictures of fallen soldiers and war veterans. Axel walked slowly and stopped completely when his eyes landed on one of the images.

"Isn’t that Marc?" he asked himself.

It was Marc standing in the photo, and beside him, held firmly in his grasp, was the Godrend sword.

Kinsey also noticed it at the same time. She stared at the image, then looked at Axel with clear surprise on her face.

"Why would he give you his own sword?" she asked. "Isn’t it meant to be like his own personal property? That’s odd..."

Axel shook his head. "I don’t know," he answered. "I honestly thought it was just some old junk weapon. That’s how he described it anyway."

As they continued walking, Axel’s thoughts spiraled. The Godrend sword was a lesser-tier mythic weapon, so Axel couldn’t help but wonder why a war veteran would carry a lesser-tier sword into battle. Before Kinsey upgraded it, the Godrend shouldn’t have been able to cut through most beings. Therefore, it shouldn’t have been able to harm Skavverns, let alone mythic beasts. Something about it didn’t make sense.

Kinsey walked ahead, leaving Axel behind with Ares and Rick.

"What was she asking you?" Ares whispered.

"It’s nothing. Just random talk about the teacher and my sword," Axel said, pointing at the sword hanging by his side.

"I wonder why you chose to bring that. We’re hunting easy creatures, not assassins!" Ares laughed.

His laughter faded as he glanced forward at Kinsey and then back at Axel. "She’s hiding something... I can feel it," he revealed.

"You’re also hiding something, Demon Slayer..." Aurora said in Axel’s head. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Regardless, the tour continued. Soon, everyone was led outside again. Oval officers stood waiting in formation. Lin stepped forward and addressed the students.

"This expedition will begin immediately. The task is simple. You students are to hunt lesser-tier beasts and gather their shards or crystals. Everything you do will be recorded and ranked, so make sure you gather as many as you can. This will be cery competitive so make sure you do your best."

Lin then pulled out a device and pressed several commands. A moment later, an SOS system was sent to every student’s device.

"If you run into danger, especially an advanced-tier beast, you are to press the SOS button and retreat immediately. You are not to engage under any circumstances unless your life is at risk. Understood?"

"I can reassure you that the chances of encountering advanced beasts are slim, but precautions are necessary," he announced.

"Now, without further ado, pair yourselves up and form a group of seven," he commanded.

The field erupted into movement as students quickly gathered around familiar faces. Most of them paired themselves up with people who were almost as strong as them. Spectra paired up with Spectras because no one wanted to be with a Lumina.

Axel, Ares, and Rick were already together, and a short while later, Kinsey walked over.

"Uh... is it okay if I join you guys instead?" she asked nervously.

"Why don’t you want to hang out with your fellow ladies? Scared of getting killed instantly?" Ares asked with a smirk.

"You’re so sexist!" Kinsey said with frustration. "What makes you think girls aren’t capable of taking care of themselves?"

Ares was about to reply when Axel stepped in and diffused the situation.

"What Ares was trying to say is that you can join us," he said, turning to Ares. "Right, Ares?"

Ares rolled his eyes. "Yes, fine. She can join us."

Before long, most of the students were already grouped, but only one person stood apart.

Nile Reed remained alone, completely unbothered. She was focused on the scenery, quietly admiring the vast blue land around them.

"Nile Reed!" Lin called out. "May I remind you that this isn’t an amusement park. You’re not here to sightsee," he said.

"Can’t blame a girl for admiring nature..." Nile responded flatly.

Lin sighed. "Come on. Find a group."

"I don’t need one," she shrugged. "I’ll be fine on my own."

"This isn’t a negotiation. Grouping is necessary for this exercise."

Lin scanned the field and noticed Axel’s group was still short.

"Go over there and join them," he ordered, leaving no room for argument.

Nile looked annoyed and clearly wanted to argue more, but she gave in.

"You four," she said, pointing at them. "Better stay out of my way..." she growled. Her eyes landed specifically on Axel and Ares.

"Welcome, Pocahontas," Ares greeted with a smirk.

While this was happening, two students moved anxiously through the crowd, looking for a group to fit themselves into.

"Excuse me," the boy said to a Lumina 5 group leader. "Can my sister and I be in your group?"

The group leader glanced at their tags. Both were Lumina 1. "Buzz off, weaklings. We don’t need dead weight here."

The boy pulled his sister along and looked around desperately. His eyes landed on a group with only five members. He recognized the boy standing in the middle.

"That’s the one who defeated a Fern!"

He tightened his grip on his sister’s hand.

"Come on, Kora," he said quietly. "Let’s see if they’ll accept us..."